People & Places

Best City In Which to Live Orange County 2009 - San Clemente

Sand, pier, surf, waves, breeze . . . Yeah, yeah, coastal OC is pretty great. But any inlander can list some downsides: It's pricey, packed and, often, pretentious. Not so much in San Clemente, though. Laid-back and relatively uncrowded, the town in some ways feels more Baja California than Southern California. There's an art scene, a surf scene and a dining scene, but San Clemente is best-suited for anyone who's post-scene. Another perk: If all that beachy prettiness gets tiresome, there's plenty of freeway access. It's not hard to get away from San Clemente, though it is hard to understand why you'd want to.